


Anticipation... Is Makin' Me Wait

by junko



Series: Chasing Demons [42]
Category: Bleach
Genre: M/M, Original Character(s), mentions of abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-11
Updated: 2013-02-11
Packaged: 2017-11-28 23:11:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,487
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/679934
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/junko/pseuds/junko
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tonight is the night that Renji and Byakuya go to the Human World, after  Renji ties up some loose ends they finally head out.... will it be everything they hope for?  (Part 1 of "The Seminar")</p>
            </blockquote>





	Anticipation... Is Makin' Me Wait

**Author's Note:**

> Please keep in mind that while Renji is making judgments about various forms of BDSM play, *I* am not.

Once Kenpachi and Yachiru found their way out, Renji spent the rest of the day anticipating the evening. He kept himself busy—turning in paperwork, checking in at the Division, and starting to organize the soccer tournament. 

When he stopped in to see if Matsumoto might be interested in helping out with the soccer thing, she was delighted by the idea. She agreed to help recruit and organize teams. Renji figured that meant the thing was pretty much sewn up already since all the red-blooded men would be lining up in droves to volunteer. Plus, she might not be much for Division work, but that woman was seriously driven when it came to extracurricular activities. As she started talking about various details, Renji cut her off with a quick question, “Who’s your male counterpart? Which guy is going to get all the girls involved?”

“Ukitake,” she said without hesitation. “He’s super hot.”

 _And super gay_. Renji wanted to say—though he didn’t know that for a fact, only that he was clearly into Kyrōraku for… centuries. So, he said, “Okay, so if we promise a little shirtless Captain Ukitake all the ladies will show?”

“Oh, definitely,” she agreed, “Unless, of course, you can get that captain of yours to show off a little skin.”

“Ha!” Renji laughed at the thought, “Yeah, okay, I’ll see what I can do to get Ukitake in on this.”

#

It was never hard to get in to see Ukitake when he was well. 

The Thirteenth was the opposite of the Sixth in terms of buffering their captain from outsiders. In fact, Renji wandered in completely unchallenged at the gate, and found the captain’s office door wide open. 

Renji cautiously stuck his head around the door, not wanting to interrupt the captain at his business. No one was at the desk. Instead, Ukitake sat on a pile of pillows in the corner talking in low, serious tones with Rukia over a pot of tea. But, seeing Renji, the captain smiled widely. “Lieutenant Abarai!” he said brightly. “Come in.”

“Hey, Renji,” Rukia said. “What brings you out here?”

“Soccer,” Renji said.

#

Ukitake was excited to get involved and seemed especially keen to get Captain Hitsugaya in on everything. By the end of their meeting, Renji felt like he’d made some serious progress on the tournament. He was making his excuses to head off to see who else might be enthusiastic about this project when Ukitake pulled him aside. “Walk with me for a moment, Lieutenant.”

Renji’s gut clenched. He had to swallow back a reflexive, ‘am I in trouble, sir?’ and instead exchanged a glance with Rukia. She gave him a ‘yeah, that means the same thing here, and I have no idea what you did,’ shrug. 

“I’ll catch up with you later,” she said, her eyes adding, ‘you can tell me what this is about then’ to Renji.

Renji tried to make his own escape. “Uh, I really need to hit at least another couple divisions before this evening—“

“I’ll only take a minute of your time, Lieutenant.”

“Yes, sir,” Renji said, dutifully trailing Ukitake out the door into the sunshine. As they walked past the practice yard it was clear how much the captain was respected by his troops. Everyone stopped to stand at attention at his passing until he waved them off to continue their training. 

Walking in silence, Renji followed Ukitake down a path that lead toward a large lake. Tall cattails rustled in the breeze. Dragonflies flitted along the water’s smooth surface, and bobbed on slender grass fronds. Frogs plopped into the water one step ahead of them. The air was warm and heavy with the swampy, fecund smell of lake mud. Renji was starting to relax, but as soon as the low wooden structure of the Ugendō Quarters came in sight, Renji knew why he’d been called aside.

“If this is about last night,” Renji said as they strolled along a worn dirt path near the tall grasses around the water’s edge. “Let me just say right now how sorry I am for my behavior. I think I said something very rude to your partner. I’ll go around and apologize to him next. I, uh… really shouldn’t drink. Ever.”

“What happened to your chin, Renji?”

Fuck. He’d forgotten about that. He rubbed the road rash, feeling the rough scabby scratches and sighed. “It wasn’t what you’re thinking, that’s for sure.”

Ukitake stopped, turning to face Renji. “I just want the truth.”

Renji cocked an eyebrow at him. “Okay, the truth? I was stupid drunk when I tried to flash step and ended up stopping with my face.”

“I see,” Ukitake said. “You tripped and fell.”

Goddamn it all. Renji knew anything he said would end up reduced to sounding like some weak excuse. “Yeah, that’s right. I tripped and fell. You wanted the truth? I gave it to you. There’s nothing I can say that’s going to convince you otherwise, is there?”

The look in his sea-green eyes made it very clear how disappointed he was with Renji’s answer. “I suppose there’s nothing _I_ can say to convince _you_ that you don’t have to stay with anyone who hurts you.”

What to say to this gnarled mass of fucked-up? 

Taking a moment, Renji made a conscious effort to relax—unhunching shoulders and unclenching fists. It wouldn’t help to start screaming. He’d only look defensive and that’d dig Byakuya and him a bigger hole to get buried in.

Renji let out a long breath, and held Ukitake’s gaze. “Look, sir, I really do understand what you’re saying. But, I’ve got bankai now. I’m not trapped anywhere. If I wanted, I could take another division. The head captain offered me the Fifth just this morning. I’ve got options. I don’t got to stay nowhere I don’t want to be.”

Ukitake nodded. “This is good. It’s important that you have an out,” he said. He seemed visibly relieved, but his dark eyebrows still knit together in concern. “I’ve already expressed how very uneasy I am with your situation. But, I suppose there’s nothing more I can do but trust that you’ll do what’s best for yourself.”

“Thank you, sir. You have no idea how much that means to me.”

#

When Renji went to find Kyōraku, however, he couldn’t even get past the gate. Ise flashed out to meet Renji on the street. “The captain is busy, but I can give him a message if you like.”

Busy? Sleeping it off more like. “Yeah, okay,” Renji said, glancing up at the roof of the Division wondering if he’d see the big guy snoring up there somewhere. “Just tell him I came by to apologize for last night and if he wants details he can talk to his partner.”

“I wouldn’t think you’d be the one needing to come around to apologize,” she said, adjusting her glasses. 

“I kind of hate how much you seem to already know about everything,” Renji said, frowning at her. But, Ise had been there last night, at least nominally. She’d been the one sent off to tell Byakuya where Renji was. He shrugged, deciding he really didn’t want to know how she got her information. So, he switched tracks, “Any chance you’d help organize a soccer tournament?”

She smiled tightly and showed him her clipboard, which had the beginnings of play-off schedules. “I’m already on it.”

“Right. Of course you are.”

#

Finally, it was evening and time to rendezvous with Byakuya at the Kuchiki senkaimon. For once, Byakuya was there before he was. Renji hurried up to him with, “I’m really sorry, sir. The Women’s Association Soccer Tournament meeting took up more time than I thought it would.”

Byakuya turned slightly and raised one elegant eyebrow, “Women’s Association Tournament?”

Renji just smiled helplessly. “Once Lieutenant Ise and her clipboard got involved, I lost all control. I’m just grateful they’re letting me be a gofer for them.”

“Indeed,” Byakuya said. Renji could hear suppression of a smile in Byakuya’s tone. “They can be a very persuasive force.”

Renji shrugged as they moved into the open gateway. “Damn straight. Anyway, I know enough to step out of the way of a superior warrior.”

#

It was raining in Karakura Town. Mist haloed the streetlamps and darkened the gray concrete sidewalks beneath their feet. Stepping into the gigai was like pulling on wet swim trunks. Skin and flesh clung cold and heavy against Renji’s soul.

However, Urahara had left them umbrellas and a note for Byakuya. “News of Hana, I suppose,” Byakuya said looking the brightly colored envelope over once he’d dressed. He set it back in the middle of the storage unit’s floor. “I’ll read it upon our return.”

Renji noticed Byakuya’s eyes linger on the spot in the alley where they first came across the reincarnation of his wife, but Byakuya straightened his shoulders and reached out to briefly squeeze Renji’s hand.

“Are you ready for this?” Byakuya asked, as he huddled close under their shared umbrella. His breath puffed white in the cool air.

“I have no idea,” Renji admitted. “But that’s never stopped me before.”

#

Renji hadn’t expected to be separated from Byakuya right away. He also hadn’t anticipated a quiz… one he felt, despite many assurances, he was utterly failing. 

What the fuck was ‘age play’ anyway? Luckily, there was an option for ‘I have no idea what this is/have no idea if I’d like it.’ But, he was beginning to feel really stupid given how often he checked off that particular box. ‘Human pony’? Yeah, okay, he could guess what that was, and now he had to check, ‘No’ he’d never done that, and ‘1’ on the scale of how much he thought he’d like it, which wasn’t too much. Though, as always, he hovered momentarily over ‘0’ which meant, ‘have no interest, but would do it for you.’

He glanced around at the others in his group. They sat on folding chairs around a card table in a corner by the display of leashes and collars. Several heads bent dutifully over the questionnaire/checklist. There was a plate of green tea cookies in the middle of the table that no one but Renji had tried. 

Everyone silently scribbled away. There’d been a half-hearted introduction around the table, in which Renji realized he was probably one of the few with his real name written on the tag stuck to his cotton shirt. Most seemed to have aliases like ‘HisOne.’ Renji was glad he’d noticed this earlier, and had offered that Byakuya chose ‘Taicho,” since it would neatly solve the overly familiar problem and cover any slip-ups on Renji’s part.

Most of the people sitting around the table were women. In fact, Renji was one of only two guys. The other dude had ragged shock of lavender hair and a ton of peircings—nose and ears and a row of rings over his dark eyebrows. He had on a heavy-duty collar, not unlike the one Byakuya had bought Renji. Since his shirt had the sleeves ripped off, Renji could see tattoos each bicep—one side had a Christian angel, the other a devil.

Renji showed off his ink, too, as it happened. At the storage unit, despite the rain and the chill, he’d followed a perverse impulse to dress a little on the trashy side. He had on hip-hugging blue jeans and a black muscle shirt over which he’d thrown a leather jacket. The interior of the shop was warm enough that he now had the jacket draped over the back of his chair. Byakuya had muttered that Renji looked like a hoodlum, but had harbored a secret smile—especially once Renji let his hair down to fall loosely around his shoulders. Of course, Byakuya dressed like he’d just stepped out of some advertisement for high end men’s apparel. Urahara must have noted Byakuya’s preferences, because this time there was lot of more suit coat and slacks options. 

Renji hoped Byakuya was doing okay, all on his own. Those that identified as ‘doms’ had been shown to a back room; they were having their own special talk about consent.

The girl sitting next to Renji kept checking out his tats. She had a pixie cut dyed bright white and a tiny hennaed star under her left eye. When he caught her staring, she fluttered and went quickly back to her questionnaire.

Right.

Okay… how did he feel about having food chosen for him?

Hmmm, food was _always_ sexy to Renji. He decided among the other things, he had to check “!” for ‘I’m embarrassed by how much the thought of this turns me on.’

‘Clothespins’? Crap, back to ‘I have no idea what this entails.’

#

When Renji was finished filling out his form, he got up and helped himself to the table full of drinks. He found a curry-flavored soda and popped the top. All the ‘subs’ mingled while they waited for the ‘doms’ to finish up and for the next part to start. The host of the seminar came over with a smile and a peer at Renji’s name tag. She considered his chest very curiously for a long time, and then she glanced at the backroom where Byakuya had gone. “So, if you’re the second love, who’s first?”

“His wife,” Renji said, pushing a strand of hair from his face and taking a swig of the pop. “But, awkwardly, Renji is actually my given name, not an alias.”

“Oh, that is awkward. Sorry,” she said apologetically. The hostess had on a lot of shiny black material that distractingly hugged all her curves. Renji wasn’t sure what the fabric was, but it didn’t smell all-together natural. “You came with the extremely pretty, adorkably shy dark-haired one, right?”

Shy? “I’d call him reserved, but, yeah. Why?”

“I just… well, with the way he kept his eyes to himself and trailed behind you, I thought he’d be out here and you’d be in there.”

Byakuya as submissive…. Renji wished he had the form so he could check ‘! ! 5.’ ‘5’ for ‘love this/can’t wait to try it.’ But, since the hostess seemed to still be waiting for an answer, Renji shrugged, “Guess you can’t judge a book and all that.”

She tapped her highly glossed lips with a long fingernail. “Yet, why is there something about you that makes me think you’d be really handy with a whip?”

Deep inside, Renji heard Zabimaru’s rattling hiss. Could she sense his true nature somehow? “Heh,” Renji smiled at her warily. It was true, though usually for a deadly effect. “I am, as it happens. But, how can you tell something like that just by looking?”

“A special gift,” she smiled mysteriously as she walked away.

Renji started to follow after to ask what she meant by that when the Byakuya and the others finally emerged from the back room.

**Author's Note:**

> Screech....! Full stop. 
> 
> Yeah, I just sort of end this here because I intend to let our boys live out every moment of this. The next part will involve a lot more Byakuya/Renji interaction so it seemed like a natural stopping point, if somewhat abrupt. Apologies for any whiplash!


End file.
